This invention generally relates to a three wheeled toy vehicle and, more particularly, to a three wheeled vehicle capable of transforming between multiple modes or configurations.
Toy wheeled vehicles are well-known. Three wheeled toy vehicles typically have two parallel axes with two wheels provided on one axis and one wheel provided on the other axis in a T-shaped configuration. Such vehicles translate forward and reverse and turn toward either lateral direction. However, known three wheeled toy vehicles often do not provide lateral translation, pure rotation or a combination of translation and rotation.
Holonomic vehicles have been developed that provide omni-directional motion. Holonomic or omni-directional motion is a robotics term regarding the degrees of freedom. In robotics, holonomicity refers to the relationship between the controllable and total degrees of freedom of a given robot (or part thereof). If the controllable degrees of freedom is greater than or equal to the total degrees of freedom then the robot is said to be holonomic. If the controllable degrees of freedom is less than the total degrees of freedom it is non-holonomic. Holonomic vehicles may move in any translational direction while simultaneously but independently controlling its rotational, orientation and speed about a center of its body. Holonomic vehicles have been developed that either have three or four wheels spaced equiangularly apart such that axes of rotation are mutually adjoining.
What is desired but not provided in the prior art, is a multi-mode three wheel toy vehicle that transforms between a holonomic configuration and a non-holonomic configuration. It is believed that a new toy vehicle providing features and performance of heretofore unavailable motion would provide more engaging play activity than already known vehicles.